- Citigroup upgraded Vistaprint (VPRT) to buy from hold on valuation following the recent pullback in shares. The firm also raised its price target on the stock to $62 from $55.
- Fox-Pitt upgraded Eaton Vance (EV) to outperform from in line citing strong fundamentals. The firm raised its target to $36 from $34.
- Stifel Nicolaus upgraded Hospitality Properties (HPT) to buy from hold citing valuation and expected cash dividend in 2010. The firm has a $22 target on the stock.
- The Advisory Board (ABCO) was upgraded to overweight from equal weight at First Analysis.
- Technip (TKPPY) was upgraded to outperform from neutral at Credit Suisse.
- Jefferies upgraded Energy XXI (EXXI) to hold from underperform and raised its target to $2 from $1.
BNHN posts
FeedAnalyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: VPRT, EV, HPT, NRG, GTE, BNHNA, VAR, ITRI and FARO
Earnings highlights: Lehman, UBS, Krispy Kreme, Pepsico, Pep Boys and others
Here are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:
- ADC Telecommunications Inc. (NASDAQ: ADCT) beat Q2 estimates and raised its full-year guidance.
- Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) near-term earnings prospects led to an analyst downgrade.
- Banco de Chile (NYSE: BCH) earnings prospects after an acquisition led to an analyst's upgrade.
- Benihana Inc. (NASDAQ: BNHN) posted lower Q4 profits but still beat earnings estimates.
- Bob Evans Farms Inc. (NASDAQ: BOBE) reported solid Q4 results due in part to cost management.
- Brown-Forman Corp. (NYSE: BF.B) easily beat Q4 estimates and offered full-year guidance.
- CMGI Inc. (NASDAQ: CMGI) lowered its guidance, sending shares tumbling 25%.
- Coca Cola Hellenic Bottling Co. (NYSE: CCH) warned of weaker earnings due to economic conditions.
- Conn's Inc. (NASDAQ: CONN) reported solid Q1 results and issued in-line guidance for the year.
- Dick's Sporting Goods Inc. (NYSE: DKS) earnings prospects impress analysts despite recent guidance.
- Guess? Inc. (NYSE: GES) topped Q1 expectations due to strong international expansion.
- Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Inc. (NYSE: KKD) swung to a Q1 profit despite falling revenues.
- Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. (NYSE: LEH) posted a bigger-than-expected loss on further write-downs.
Continue reading Earnings highlights: Lehman, UBS, Krispy Kreme, Pepsico, Pep Boys and others
Benihana, Smith & Wesson report lower Q4 earnings
Both Japanese restaurant chain Benihana Inc. (NASDAQ: BNHN) and gun maker Smith & Wesson Holding Corp. (NASDAQ: SWHC) on Thursday said that their profits fell in their fiscal fourth-quarters. Shares of the former fell Friday by more than 11%, while shares of the latter rose nearly 6%.
Miami-based Benihana's fourth-quarter net income fell 30% from the year-ago quarter to $2.7 million, or 17 cents per share percent, due to the difficult environment for restaurants. Revenue for the quarter ended March 30 fell 2% to $70.2 million, and same-store sales fell 2.2%.
Analysts polled by Thomson Financial had expected a profit of 15 cents per share on revenue of $70.8 million.
For the fiscal year, earnings fell 13% to $11.7 million, or 75 cents per share, and revenue rose 9% to $296.9 million.
Shares of Benihana fell to a 52-week low of $6.69 on Friday before closing at $6.97. Shares are down 44.7% year to date.
Continue reading Benihana, Smith & Wesson report lower Q4 earnings

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